#73: Matt Walters | Foeder Crafters

The podcast is joined by a certified saint in the church of oak,
founder and co-owner of St. Louis' Foeder Crafters.  Foeder
Crafters came out of nowhere to become THE foeder fabricator in
the US. We trace back to when Matt, "a maker of things", was in
the early stages of opening a brewery with a Cy Young Award
winner when a brewer casually asked if Matt thought he could make
a giant oak vessel for him. Instead of being a brewer, Matt was
catapulted down a meteoric path of both trailblazing and 
perfecting  the craft of domestic foeder production. He
talks about how the industry was simply starved for innovation,
the tight-lipped and stale culture in more seasoned foeders, and
laments the huge challenge of sourcing *just* the right type of
oak for his tanks. Matt also explains how the endlessly
challenging process of foeder building has allowed his company to
effectively hold a monopoly on the industry in America, sings of
the value in sucking on every piece of oak he receives, and
points out the subtle but critical differences between CRAFTsmen
and CRAPsmen. It was a blast to have this conversation  with
one of the nicest people on Earth (unless you're competition),
which is laden with a glut of knowledge regardless of your
familiarity with the Almighty powers of Missouri White Oak.